Employers in the Spokane area added 3,800 jobs in January, according to preliminary data from the Washington state Employment Security Department.

The total nonfarm job count in the Spokane-Spokane Valley metropolitan statistical area rose to 269,300 in January, up from 265,500 in December and 264,000 in January 2024.

Total employment for January in the MSA was 262,900, down from the year-earlier total of about 271,300.

The number of unemployed people actively seeking employment was about 14,900 in January, for an unemployment rate of 5.4%, the same rate as the year-earlier month, when the number of unemployed people was at about 15,600.

The January unemployment rate was an increase over December’s rate of 5.2%.

Comparatively, the statewide January unemployment rate was 4.7%, up from 4.5% in the year-earlier month.